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Guns & Calibers from the past; Johnson MMJ 5.7mm Spitfire!
The first thing we need to know is the creator of this caliber, "MMJ" Melvin Maynard Johnson Jr. He was commissioned into the Marine Corps Reserve in 1933 as a Second Lieutenant and completed Harvard Law School in 1934. Johnson designed the M1941 Johnson rifle, the Johnson Light Machine Gun and the M1947 Johnson auto carbine. So clearly he was a man that understood the dynamics of weapons design.
In 1963 he founded his Johnson Arms, Inc business. Developing models that utilized the M1 Carbine chambered in his creation the Johnson MMJ 5.7mm Spitfire. He also offered barrels chambered in that caliber for converting any M1 Carbine by replacing the barrel with modifications of the feed ramp. Johnson advertised this new smaller caliber and the modified carbine as a survival rifle being light, fast handling with a low recoil.
So what was this new caliber all about? The cartridge is based on the .30 Carbine that was necked-down to .22 caliber. With that the Johnson MMJ 5.7mm Spitfire A.K.A. 22 Spitfire, 5.7mm Johnson or 5.7mm MMJ American wildcat cartridge was born.
Today these Carbines are seldom encountered. However, years ago I was very fortunate to stumble onto one. A young fellow had inherited one from an Uncle and was walking around the Rickreall winter gun show with it. When I first laid eyes on it, it just appeared to be a custom stocked M1 Carbine. Several people had looked at it but handed it back after he had told them about the caliber, 5.7mm Spitfire. Well, obviously that made me smile and it went home with me.
Factory ammunition was once manufactured for the Carbine but has long disappeared from the market. However at the last Rickreall winter show I was able to purchase a box from an old friend.
Pictured below is the custom Mannlicher thumbhole stocked Carbine and the box of ammunition. The action has been anodized and I have no idea who completed the work. But I find the Mannlicher style stock to be very handsome and I'm just waiting for some nice weather to take it out for a test drive.
P.S.
If you happen to have any ammunition or dies laying around for this and want to sell them, please contact me.
The first thing we need to know is the creator of this caliber, "MMJ" Melvin Maynard Johnson Jr. He was commissioned into the Marine Corps Reserve in 1933 as a Second Lieutenant and completed Harvard Law School in 1934. Johnson designed the M1941 Johnson rifle, the Johnson Light Machine Gun and the M1947 Johnson auto carbine. So clearly he was a man that understood the dynamics of weapons design.
In 1963 he founded his Johnson Arms, Inc business. Developing models that utilized the M1 Carbine chambered in his creation the Johnson MMJ 5.7mm Spitfire. He also offered barrels chambered in that caliber for converting any M1 Carbine by replacing the barrel with modifications of the feed ramp. Johnson advertised this new smaller caliber and the modified carbine as a survival rifle being light, fast handling with a low recoil.
So what was this new caliber all about? The cartridge is based on the .30 Carbine that was necked-down to .22 caliber. With that the Johnson MMJ 5.7mm Spitfire A.K.A. 22 Spitfire, 5.7mm Johnson or 5.7mm MMJ American wildcat cartridge was born.
Today these Carbines are seldom encountered. However, years ago I was very fortunate to stumble onto one. A young fellow had inherited one from an Uncle and was walking around the Rickreall winter gun show with it. When I first laid eyes on it, it just appeared to be a custom stocked M1 Carbine. Several people had looked at it but handed it back after he had told them about the caliber, 5.7mm Spitfire. Well, obviously that made me smile and it went home with me.
Factory ammunition was once manufactured for the Carbine but has long disappeared from the market. However at the last Rickreall winter show I was able to purchase a box from an old friend.
Pictured below is the custom Mannlicher thumbhole stocked Carbine and the box of ammunition. The action has been anodized and I have no idea who completed the work. But I find the Mannlicher style stock to be very handsome and I'm just waiting for some nice weather to take it out for a test drive.
P.S.
If you happen to have any ammunition or dies laying around for this and want to sell them, please contact me.
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